An Alternate Ending
by talkingtothemoon
Summary: Really quick Theresa & Joel one shot. An alternate ending to Theresa's exit.


An alternate ending for Theresa McQueen.

**An Alternate Ending**

Theresa sat on the couch, staring deeply into the television at her favourite programme. She kicked her heels off and relaxed, trying to get her mind off of that awful Dodger. How could he want Texas over her after all this time? Why was he even with her? He knew she was a killer after all. And why was _she _with _him_? Maybe it was just the lust and crazy passion that took over her and made her want nothing other than him. She thought she loved him, but how could she after how he'd treated her the entire time they'd been together. Both times. In a way Theresa secretly missed how she and Dodger used to be back before she dated his brother, Will. She'd not thought about it up until this point but they used to have fun and flirt harmlessly and probably even had more chemistry with each other than they did currently.

Her head suddenly popped up and out of her daydream as Mercedes burst through the door.

"Oi you, we gotta problem," Mercedes said immediately. There was worry in her voice, which was rare with Mercedes.

"Eh?" Theresa answered, in her usual ditzy-sounding voice. She presumed her cousin was referring to something that wouldn't matter to the blonde at all and turned her head to continue watching television.

"Sonny Valentine. 'E's 'ere en' 'e," Mercedes continued, sounding as out of breath as a dog that had been running across a field for an hour-or-so. "Therese… Our Carm's only gone an' bloody told 'im wha' ya did." He arms flapped about in frustration. As for Theresa, her smile faded immediately and her head turned to stare blankly at Mercedes.

"Oh my god, I am gonna kill 'er!"

"Killin's wha' got ya in this mess in t'first place, love, " Mercedes snarled. "Grab ya shit. You gotta get outta 'ere." Mercedes moved over nearer to Theresa and began packing some of her things away. A panic look could be seen on both of their faces. Theresa frozen and Mercedes doing all that was in her power to save her cousin from getting locked up. That's when the doorbell rang. Suddenly. Theresa's mouth fell open and her eyes fixated on Mercy's. "Move. Quick!" Mercedes hissed, waiting for Theresa to run and hide before she ran to answer the door. "Alright, yeah, I am comin'," she yelled at whoever was at the door after they'd rang the bell several times now.

With a fed up look on her face Mercedes grabbed the door and pulled it open, this time her mouth falling open when she saw who was the other side of the door. "Thought ya did'a runner, you."

"Is she in? Theresa? Is she in?" The voice said back. Mercedes bit her lip and looked before herself before shaking her head.

"Look, Joel, love, this ent a good time." There was a look of regret and guilt on her face, but this was for Theresa's own good. She attempted to shut the door on him, but it didn't seem like he was going to go anywhere. Mercedes sighed loudly before walking away, leaving the door open for Joel to walk into the house.

"False alarm," Mercedes shouted, unknowing of where Theresa was hiding. Typically enough for Theresa, it was only under the dining room table. She crawled out, brushing herself off as she got up and wandering into the front room, having no idea who it was at the door. Mercedes sighed at her and wandered out to the kitchen herself to give Theresa and her mystery guest some time alone.

"Ew that floor is dead gross. Think I'd rather 'ave got c-" She looked up suddenly at the familiar figure that stood in front of her. A surprised and slightly flirty smile appeared on her face. "What you doing here?" She asked him, not moodily, more because she was so surprised; confused even. It was a surprise. A big one. But she wasn't sure how she felt about it. Joel left. Just like that, he left. They were probably soul mates or something, yet she had to chuck all his stuff away angrily and use Dodger to get over him

"You need to listen to me. I had to go, I had no choice. Don't be mad, alright?" Joel replied, mis-judging Theresa's facial expressions

"Oi, will ya get rid of 'im or summah, T? We gotta get on with tha' thing. _Remember?_" Mercedes nagged, reappearing from the kitchen once again. She really couldn't stay away for long, could she? Theresa looked around with a couple of tears in her eyes. This was all so real now. When Mercedes was worried about something, well, it had to be real then, didn't it? Theresa bit down on her lip and stared up at Joel, hopelessly. That's when Mercedes growled at the romance and wandered off again in disgust. After a few seconds of staring in awe at her ex, Theresa grabbed his hand and pulled him out the door.

The coldness of winter felt as if it was swallowing up her bare feet as she ran, pulling a clueless Joel behind her. She kept running – or walking quickly even. Theresa wasn't much of a runner - until she reached the ally way. It was known for everything going wrong, but it was the easiest place to hide.

"What you doing? What's with the run… walking quickly?" Joel asked. Now he was the one who was out of breath.

"Joel…" Theresa began, with a quivering lip. "I-I did something… Like proper bad." She stared away from him. "Y…You know when you killed your Dad, yeah? And I said that, that I knew how it felt and that…"

"What do you mean? I can't. I can't remember," Joel replied after a moment of thought. He was so anxious at the time that no words really went through to his brain.

"I killed someone too," Theresa hissed, suddenly. "And now, now his brother's after me and he's dead angry. Our Carm told him everything and now I'm proper gonna get locked up and I dunno how I'll survive it, Joel. I can't go in there." Tears began streaming from her bloodshot eyes. Joel was going to hate her as well now. She'd have no one and she'd be locked away. Maybe she could even say hello to his father, and maybe even Ethan whilst she was stuck in there. Joel stepped forward and wrapped his arms around the blonde; his lips kissing the blonde comfortingly on the head. He'd missed the feeling of being able to touch Theresa; the way it felt when he pulled her against his chest. No other girl would ever make him feel the way she always did. He liked her instantly; the minute he met her. It took no longer than that and that was special, no matter what she had and hadn't done in the past. He'd messed up too; many times. There was no blame in his heart for the blonde, just sympathy. Theresa stepped away from Joel and leant against the wall, sliding down it and ending up sat on the floor with her head resting on her knees. Joel stared at her intently. Never had he seen her this way before. She was strong; she could usually battle anything. Joel soon slid himself down next to her and pulled her back into a hug again.

"So what happened? Who did you kill?" Theresa's face slowly tilted into Joe's direction as she wipes her tears from her eyes and tried to get the courage to explain and admit.

"It was C-Calvin. He's Kathleen-Angel's Daddy. He slept with me and I thought he proper liked me. But then he told me it was a mistake and he told me to get rid… Have an abortion. I was _**so **_angry. He made me proper furious and I just kinda lost it. And his wedding. With our Carm." Her face was full of fear. Full of regret. Full of worry for the future. "People just, they treat me like I'm just a piece of crap. They lie to me and they cheat on me and they_… leave _me," she sniffed, remembering even Joel had done it. In fact, Will was the only one who hadn't done any of those things and he'd gone crazy and was locked up himself. "So why'd ya _'ave_ to leave?" Joel shrugged, not really knowing where to start.

"Brendan. I just… Cheryl told me he'd gone and I wanted to come back. For you." Joel edged forward slightly and cupped Theresa's face in his hands whilst staring into the eyes he'd missed every day for the past year. "Let's go; run away like we always planned. Together. You, me and even little Kathleen Angel." He almost sounded excited about it. And Theresa? Finally she could be part of a proper family. Finally she could be with someone she truly cared about. He was probably one of the few she ever had cared about properly. A smile burst onto her tear-stained face as she shook her head up and down accepting his offer. "I've never wanted anything other than that, Theresa. It was always you."

"You don't like… 'ate me then?" Theresa asked. By his reaction it was obvious he didn't, but she could barely believe it, especially after Dodger's stupid reaction. Joel's finger wiped away the remainders of Theresa's tears and his lips slowly pressed themselves against her lips. The feeling of the skin gliding against hers for the first time in so long was indescribable. He pulled away again looking deep into her beautiful eyes and smiling back at her beaming smile. "Joel, I love you. I proper want that more than anything; to be with you, away from here."

"I love you. Always have. Always will," he reassured her, sealing it with another kiss; this time a longer one.

And that was it. They packed up in a matter of minutes – taking necessities only, since Theresa had far too much stuff – grabbed Kathleen-Angel and headed off into their little sunset.


End file.
